Yamika moved first, shoving monsters aside with her arms, while Noroi followed close behind through the path she was clearing.
When Yamika shoved the last dwarf out of their way, the sight before them was Haruki, standing frozen in front of a tall wall, holding a brown piece of paper between his trembling hands.
Haruki slowly turned the paper toward them so they could take a look at its contents , it was an illustrated drawing of Haruki's face, taken from the description some of the monsters had given of him.
Yamika tilted her head in puzzlement, the axe still extended forward between her hands.
Haruki parted his lips, murmuring in a low voice so only they could hear, his tone somewhere between disbelief and joy.
"I've become famous!"
He gestured broadly around him, pointing to the pictures plastered on nearly every building, but for some reason they had only just noticed them.
Noroi's hand dropped from his wrist before he moved toward Haruki with a dangerous air and snatched the paper from him by force, studying it with a dissatisfied expression.
He closed his hand over the paper and lifted his face to give Haruki a death stare, the words coming out of him.
"This is a wanted poster, you idiot! There's a fifty-coin bounty on your head!"
"That doesn't change the fact that I've become famous!"
Haruki replied immediately with full confidence, clenching both fists together, then placing one on his hip while puffing out his chest as if he were a superhero destined to protect the world from evil.
Yamika's lips curved upward into a proud smile. She returned her axe to its place on her back before saying enthusiastically.
"My friend is famous!"
Yamika threw her arm around Haruki's shoulders, and he, in turn, wrapped his arm around hers.
And so, the three continued their journey through the market , Noroi leading with an unreadable expression, while the other two kicked at the air with each step, chanting softly about Haruki's newfound fame.
Noroi stopped abruptly, causing the two fools behind him to halt as well and look at what he had stopped for: it was a weapon shop designed in an old-fashioned style, built using brown wooden logs. The merchant's counter was placed directly in front of the customers, and behind it rested various kinds of weapons ,from swords to bows, hammers, and spiked iron balls attached to chains, long staffs, and even katanas , which left Haruki somewhat puzzled, with a hint of suspicion forming in his mind.
He spoke to the merchant, who was a tall, muscular, blue- skinned ogre wearing only pants. His massive shoulders were smeared with some dust and black oil that he used to polish the weapons he crafted. Judging by his large build, and the fact that he was a merchant, he was probably only of the second level.
"Did you make all these weapons yourself?"
The blue ogre answered Haruki's question in a cold tone that sounded more like a growl.
"Some of them I forge myself, and some I take from killing those annoying, weak humans wandering around over the past years , especially the ones who cause me trouble."
Those words made the air in Haruki's lungs turn cold. A chill of terror ran through him at the thought of this savage world that killed humans as if they were worthless flies.
But before he could react to what the blue ogre had said, Noroi stepped forward and let out a forced laugh, pretending to be amused.
"Ha ha ha ha, those pests must've been really annoying to you. I don't blame you for killing them."
The blue ogre returned the sword he had been polishing to its place, the right corner of his lips curling upward into an almost flirtatious smile. Resting both elbows on the table and leaning forward, he said appreciatively.
"I like you, kid. So, what's your order for today?"
Haruki and Yamika's faces contorted in disgust at the blue ogre's flirtatious manner toward Noroi, giving him looks full of clear judgment.
Then, at the very same moment, they glanced at each other, exchanging knowing looks without even needing to remove their masks to understand what the other was thinking.
Haruki leaned slightly toward Yamika, placing his hand near the mouth area of his mask before whispering teasingly.
"Looks like someone has quite the magnetic charm."
Yamika pressed her lips tightly together, stifling a laugh that nearly escaped, while Noroi remained oblivious to the gossip swirling behind him, focused instead on inspecting the options displayed in front of him to decide what he wanted to buy.
Finally, he said in a calm tone.
"I'll take that…"
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Thank you for reading! If this moment touched you even a little , please consider adding it to your library.💐